In a state where foolhardiness gets elevated to an artform at times, it’s easy to criticize Jerry Brown for doubling down on high speed rail in his State of the State address today. The much maligned and ridiclued project would seem to be the last thing voters need to be investing scarce resources on. Without passage of a host of tax hikes on the state ballot, K-12 education in the state will be cut drastically. And with a seven year old, I have a vested interested in maintaining quality public education.

But there’s something about Brown stubbornly sticking to his guns on this issue that strikes a resonant chord with me. In the face of declining revenues and blaoted public sectors, it’s refreshing to hear a political figure throw caution to the wind. Maybe the cost overruns on this project will be prohibitive. Maybe Jerry Brown wants to out do his former governor father. Maybe no one will be interested in taking a high speed train from Los Angeles to San Francisco (although I would). But the chutzpah involved in saying “we’re going to make this work” in the face of data that would suggest otherwise is heartening. It represents a wisp of faith in public mindedness and the belief that we can still do great things as a polity. The more sober political analyst might see this as a big waste of money, but the former English poetry major sees this as a necessary tonic in California.